Page 55 of It Started with a Kiss
* * *
Star held my face in her palms and gazed up at me, oozing that tangible excitement I was growing to love. ‘It’s what you dreamed of all those years ago as a little kid, and it’s finally happening, Fin. I’m so excited and so proud of you. You’re going to be amazing, I just know it.’
I flared my nostrils as I locked my eyes on hers, wishing I was as confident in myself as she was. ‘Yeah?’
She nodded slowly, a wide grin fixed on her gorgeous face. ‘Oh yeah.’
I released myself from her grasp and began to pace up and down my living room. ‘But... what if I forget the words or... or what if I get stage fright and just freeze up?’
She folded her arms defiantly and stepped into my path. ‘Has thateverhappened to you at rehearsals? Or when you’ve been singing at DeBasement, for that matter?’
I scrunched my brow as I thought about her question. ‘Um... no. No, it hasn’t.’
She opened her arms once again. ‘See. No reason for it to happen at all then. Stop worrying. You’re going to be brilliant.’ She slipped her arms round my neck and tiptoed up to kiss me. And for a little while, at least, my fears melted away as I lost myself in her.
* * *
We arrived with the band at the Jekyll and Hyde bar in the centre of Edinburgh an hour before our gig was due to begin. The owners of the bar had been amazingly supportive in booking us for our first live gig, and I think the fact that we were named Mr Hydeendeared us to them.
Our set list for the gig was compiled of covers of our favourite songs. Wehadstarted to write some of our own material but decided as this was the first time we’d played to a live audience—that didn’t only consist of our families and girlfriends—we’d save the original material for another time.
I stood in the poster-covered dressing room whilst the guys were tuning up and getting ready. The man reflected back at me from the mirror was someone I was slowly becoming accustomed to. I was surprised at how quickly my hair had grown, and after Alasdair had said there was no need for me to cut it for the office, that my work was what mattered, and Star had admitted that she loved my shaggy look, I’d stuck with it. My beard was trimmed, and I liked that I boreno resemblance to the Finlay Hunter of Hunter Drummond & Associates: all sharp designer suits and material items. I now looked like Fin Hunter, the guy who was daring to believe that dreamsdidcome true, and that comfort zones were meant to be stepped out of every so often.
Before I knew it, the hands on the clock had reached ten p.m. and it was time for us to go on stage. My hands were shaking and my stomach was knotted. I had already downed a couple of glasses of Dutch courage, but my nerves were still jangling, and I felt sure I was going to either pass out or throw up.
Nate poked his head around the door. ‘You right, pal? We’re up.’
Oh, crap.
Just as I was about to step out of the tiny room, my phone began to ring. My father’s number flashed on the screen.Shit. Has something happened?Panic and dread washed over me in equal measures, and I hit to accept the call.
‘Hello?’ My voice was hesitant.
My father’s voice barked through the earpiece. ‘Finlay. You really have gone stark raving mad, haven’t you?’ I pulled the phone away from my head as he continued. ‘Tell me the rumours aren’t true.’
I sighed heavily, partly through relief that the old bastard was still alive, and partly through frustration because the old bastardwas still alive. Talk about a double-edged sword.
With flared nostrils, I replied, ‘What rumours would they be?’
‘That not only are you sleeping with the enemy, and by that I mean McKendrick, but now you’ve taken up with a bunch of morons and are having some kind of mid-life crisis by singing in a bloody poor excuse for a musical outfit.’
I clenched my jaw.Could his timing have been any worse?‘Ah, those rumours would be true then, yes.Allof the above.’
His barrage began again in earnest. ‘Are there no depths to which you won’t sink to ruin the family name, Finlay? What makes you think these hair-brained schemes are a good idea? I mean, working for the man who almost ruined our family is a low blow. And I’m guessing it was a deliberate stab at your mother and me. And do you really think anyone wants to hear you caterwauling on a bloody stage? You’re not a child any more, Finlay, so why are you acting like one? Prancing round on a stage like a little kid with a hairbrush. Honestly. I’ve never heard such utter preposterous nonsense. It’s evident that you need help, young man. Serious help. You’re not a bloody performing monkey, you know. Do you even care about your mother? What will people think? You’ve overstepped the mark this time, Finlay. You’ve really done it now. You’ve brought the word betrayal to a whole new level and given it an entirely new meaning. No doubt if I was to look up the word in a dictionary there would be your face plain for all to see! I want this damned nonsense to stop, do you hear me?’
His formal tone and ranting set the hairs on the back of my neck prickling in irritation. ‘Quite frankly, Dad, I don’t give a flying fuck what you think of me any more.’ I hit end call and threw my phone at the wall where it bounced and fell to the floor in a heap of crumpled metal and fractured glass.
34
Star
I sat clutching my glass of Jack and Coke in one hand and my camera in the other. I was determined not to miss a damn thing. But the drink was kind of a necessity, thanks to my state of nervousness. Fin had been in the dressing room for over half an hour and I had left him to gather his thoughts and prepare. My heart was in my mouth as I sat in the upstairs bar of the Jekyll and Hyde, waiting for Mr Hyde to begin their set.
I knew Fin would be amazing. There was no reason why he would suddenly fail, and I had every faith in him. I just wished he had the same faith in himself.
Titch came out and took his place behind the drums just as Siân and Tom arrived to my right. Tom put an arm round my shoulders, hugged me, and planted a kiss on the side of my head.
‘How’s he holding up?’ he asked in a concerned tone.
